Hot Mess
by MissElizabethPendragon
Summary: You almost got us caught, Riven!" "Me? You're the one that didn't hide it well enough." A date gone wrongs ends up fairly well. Rated K for stealing. Don't try the stunts at home kids. Musa/Riven. And I own nothing.


**A/N:** I'm back! I realize Riven is different in this than most people are used to but if you pay really close attention to the way he acts in the third and fourth season compared to the second season, you might see why. I firmly believe that Riven started softening up in the third season. This is based in the third so I tried really hard to portray that. As for the title, this was inspired by the song Hot Mess by Ashley Tisdale. Read and enjoy. Arrivederci!

**XXXXX**

"Run!" Musa clutched her new treasure closer to her chest as her feet pounded the pavement. She and her companion rounded the corner and slid into the darkest corner of the alley they could find. Her hot breath slipped from her mouth and into the air where a cloud of it could be seen in the cold night.

When they were satisfied that their pursuers had disappeared into the night air, her companion let out a breath that he didn't realize he had been holding. He had thought this would be a great idea but now he wasn't so sure.

Musa slipped out of the corner and sighed. "Well, it looks like they're gone."

Her companion began laughing and pretty soon Musa joined in. "Way to go, Riven! You almost got us caught!"

Still laughing Riven spoke, "Me? You're the one that didn't hide it well enough."

"But this was you're brilliant idea. I was a good girl before you came along, you know. 'Hey Musa, I've got a great date idea. Seriously, you're going to love it.' That's what you said." Musa was now wiping tears from her eyes. She was shaking and a little scared but mostly it was the adrenaline of stealing something for the very first time.

Riven scoffed, "I did not sound like that."

They turned around when they heard the voices of the security guards. "Hey, there they are!"

"Crap. I told a mall was a bad idea. Run!" Riven grabbed Musa's hand and pulled her up the fire escape.

Musa didn't understand why they were going up when they should be running away. When they got to the top she looked around. "Great job, Riven. We're trapped."

Riven smirked, illuminating his face in more shadows from the street light below. "No, we're not. Keep in mind that I grew up on these streets, stealing and running. That's how Saladin and Codatorta found me. Now, come on." He pulled her over to a ledge and picked her up.

Musa was really scared now. "Riven, that's a really big gap. What are you doing?"

"You'll be fine. It's smaller than it looks, I promise. Tuck and roll when you get on the other side. It's less scratches for me to explain to Layla when I take you back to the dorm with bloodied knees." He grabbed her waist a little lower and threw her.

Musa hit the cement and rolled. Before she even had a chance to pick herself up, Riven had her hand in his. "You okay?"

Musa brushed off her shirt. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just don't do that again."

Riven slid closer to her. "That scared me more than it did you. Now, for the fun part."

Musa blanched. "Fun part? Can't we just run down the fire escape?"

"Nope. They'll get to the bottom at the same time we do." Riven had walked to the side of the building and was inspecting rain gutters. He kicked one and smirked. "This will do great. I'll go first and catch you at the bottom. It looks like it's broken about five feet off the ground."

Musa was confused. "What?"

Riven climbed off the roof and grabbed the gutter. "Think of it like the poles in a fire station. It'll be fun." With that, he dissappeared from sight.

Musa ran to the side of the building. When she couldn't see him, she paniced. "Riven?! Are you dead?! Please tell me you're not a pancake!"

She heard him laugh. "No, I'm not a pancake! Come on."

Musa took a deep breath and tucked her trinket deep into her pocket. "Here we go." She repeated what Riven had done to the best of her ability but he had more muscle than her. She grabbed the gutter and slid down. Sure enough five feet from the bottom, it was broken. She let go and prayed to the Great Dragon that Riven would catch her.

He did. "Geez Muse. Are you putting on weight?"

"Excuse me?" Musa was ready to yell at him but when she looked up and realized he was only teasing, she let it go. "I really wish I had my wings right now."

"I know. Too bad Griselda decided to get tough on you and bind your magic for a week." Riven kicked a pebble as he began walking the route back to Alfea. Why Musa had wanted to walk was beyond him.

"Well, I did miss curfew every night for almost a month. I can see where she was coming from." Musa pulled her jacket around her tighter. It was colder out than she had expected.

Riven noticed she was shivering and he didn't miss her pulling the jacket tighter. She had grown up in a tropical climate and still had trouble adjusting to the colder weather here. He slipped his jacket off and over her shoulders.

Musa looked up at her boyfriend when she felt the extra weight and smiled. "Hey Riven. I think you're whipped."

Riven raised an eyebrow and looked at her. "Yeah, but don't tell the guys. They'll give me crap for months."

Musa smiled a little deeper and blushed.

Riven knew she would tell the girls. It was just one of those things girls did no matter how much you asked them not to. He didn't really mind all that much but she couldn't know that. He had a reputation to uphold. The other students were a wee bit scared of him but they respected him. That's how he survived amongst the royalty and nobility. If they found out he was going soft, it'd be the death of him. "No, seriously Muse. Don't tell anyone. Please?"

Musa smirked. She was picking up more of his habits by the day. "What do I get if I keep my mouth shut? There's gotta be something in it for me."

Riven thought about it. "Hmm. Dinner at Chez Francois?"

Musa thought it over in her head. "Will you dress up? Just you're good jeans and that really amazing black button-up you have."

Riven sighed. That wasn't so bad. He would of course have to get Sky to get the reservation plus all the time he'd be spending mucking out the dragon stables to get the money to take her to a four star restaurant. "Deal."

"Then my lips are sealed." Musa smiled and moved to her tip toes to kiss her boyfriend goodnight.

"Thanks. To think all this happened over a package of buttons."

"My bag is looking empty. Good night." She twirled on her feet and ran inside the gates of Alfea before he could kiss her again.

Riven looked on into courtyard as she dissappeared from sight. He was turning into such a sap and he knew it. "Night."


End file.
